C H E R O KEE P E O P L E S of N O R T H A M E R I C A Into the Mountains The Cherokee probably arrived in the southeastern corner of North America sometime between a d 1000 and 1500 But ANTHRO POLOGISTS are divided over where the Cherokee’s ancestors lived before that time Some believe the Cherokee were once part of the Iroquoian Indian groups that lived near the Great Lakes As evidence they point to the Cherokee language which is part of the Iroquoian language family as well as to traditions the Cherokee held in common with the Iroquois Other anthropologists believe the Cherokee have more in common with native South American tribes whose basket-weaving techniques are similar to those of the Cherokee They say that the Cherokee may have migrated north from lands in South America Wherever they came from the Cherokee spread to claim lands in parts of the present-day states of North and South Carolina Tennessee Georgia Kentucky Virginia West Virginia and Alabama Within these lands the Cherokee settled into 60 to 80 widely scattered towns Although the Cherokee people were connected by a common culture and language the towns were located in four separate regions and the people of each region spoke a dif ferent DIALECT of the Cherokee language The Cherokee towns of western A seven-pointed star representing the seven clans was featured on ceremonial clothing and other materials 9
Not only care takers of chil dren and homes Cherokee women held central positions in clan organization South Carolina and eastern Georgia were known as the Lower Settlements Those along the Little Tennessee and Tuckasegee Rivers of North Carolina made up the Middle Settlements The towns of western North Carolina were part of the Valley Settlements while those in eastern Tennessee were known as the Overhill Settlements The different areas were connected by networks of trails and the various dialects were close enough to be mutually understood In all Cherokee towns the people were divided into the same seven clans Wolf Deer Bird Red Paint Blue Wild Potato and Twisters or Long Hair The members of a clan were part of an extended family parents and children as well as grandparents aunts uncles and cousins Clans were matrilineal meaning that family relationships were traced through the female line So children belonged to the same clan as their mother not their father Because they were part of the same family members of a clan could not marry one another When a couple got mar ried they lived with the wife’s clan Each clan took care of its own members Whenever someone visited another town the members of his or her clan in that town would provide shelter and food Most Cherokee towns were built along rivers which provided a source of fish fertile land for farming good hunting grounds and water for ceremonies A town was usually surrounded by a fence made of thick pointed logs to provide protection from enemies A council house sat at the center of the town on top of a mound made of dirt The circle-shaped council house was 50 to 60 feet 15 2 18 3 m across large enough to hold the entire town’s population of 200 to 400 people and had a cone-shaped roof Inside seven sections of benches one for each clan sur rounded a sacred fire at the center The fire was never allowed to 10
e e k o r e Ch g n i e B WAT C H F O R T H E S I G N S c As they went about their everyday lives Cherokees were always on the alert for certain signs that signaled things to come usually death or illness Signs that a family member would die included seeing a fox that ran a few steps then looked back and barked frightening a wolf seeing two fighting squirrels fall out of a tree and die or hearing a hen crow Many of the signs were un likely or impossible but they helped the Cherokee accept otherwise unexplainable deaths
